A memorial to thousands of Welsh soldiers killed, wounded and missing in the Battle of the Somme needs repair – as preparations to mark World War I’s centenary are made.

The Welsh at Mametz Wood, by Christopher Williams, commissioned by David Lloyd George

A memorial to thousands of Welsh soldiers killed, wounded and missing in the Battle of the Somme needs repair – as preparations to mark World War I’s centenary are made.

The Mametz Wood dragon memorial in northern France honours the 4,000 dead, wounded and missing soldiers from the 38th Welsh Division who fought the Germans in July 1916.

It was unveiled in 1987 and has had thousands of visitors since.

But in recent years the area surrounding the memorial – a 6ft Welsh dragon on a sandstone plinth – has fallen into disrepair and the steps leading to the site are in a bad condition.

The dragon, sculpted by David Petersen from Carmarthenshire, was commissioned by the South Wales branch of the Western Front Association to commemorate the soldiers from Wales who took part in what was the first battle of the Somme.

The number had either died, wounded or we missing following the five-day bombardment during which the woefully under-trained and armed Welsh soldiers tried to recapture the wood from the experienced and professional German soldiers.

Vice-chairman of the south Wales Branch of the WFA, David Hughes, who has visited the memorial regularly since its dedication 26 years ago, hopes that the public and possibility relatives of those who died in 1916, would help raise the funds needed to make the changes.

Mr Hughes, whose uncles Joseph and Oliver Hughes fought with the Welsh Regiments in World War I, said: “The stone work is fine and the dragon needs to be repainted. But what we are concerned about are the steps leading to the memorial and the surrounding vegetation. We’d like to remove the steps and put grass there instead.”

As well as its significance to Wales, the memorial is an important tourism attraction for the nearby village of Mametz.

Mr Hughes said: “The mayor of the village thanked us when we visited last time. He said that ever since the memorial was built the economy had improved.”

Sculptor Mr Petersen, from St Clears in Carmarthenshire, sculpted the dragon from steel donated by British Steel and forged by coal given by British Coal

He explained when the dragon was built changes had to be made to suit the limited budget.

Mr Petersen said: “All the official bodies said no to giving money, and the people who did help raise money were the families of the soldiers, nurses at the then Cardiff Royal Infirmary held coffee mornings and bread pushes. In the end we had to cut our suit according to the cloth we had.

“To transport the memorial we had to ask the army at Maindy Barracks for help.”

Mr Peterson said he was overwhelmed when he visited Mametz Wood but is proud of his involvement in the memorial, both in its construction and the commemoration services since.

Dr R Gerald Hughes, a lecturer in military history at Aberystwyth University said the Mametz Wood memorial was relevant and important in Wales’ history.

He said: “Lots of countries owe their existence to World War I and this demonstrates Wales’ stake in the reconstruction of Europe and this is important to the modern Welsh identity.

“It’s important for us to be represented in the past, as well as in the future.”

* For more information about the Western Front Association’s campaign to raise money to modernise the Mametz Wood Memorial, email the Association at mutiny1917@hotmail.com. Mr Petersen is also guest speaker at the Association’s next meeting in Cardiff on February 1, at Fairwater Conservative Club.

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